


The Decision

by kkomiellex



Category: Supernatural
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-18 04:15:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28860912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kkomiellex/pseuds/kkomiellex
Summary: Dean Winchester is content in his life. He has a good job that he loves, a close friend group, and an incredible house in small-town North Carolina. The bachelor of the town, he flirts with all the ladies and gentlemen but nothing serious ever stuck. That is until Castiel Novak moves in next door. Dean tries to be a good neighbor but Catiel has a way of getting on his nerves like no other. And both of them find themselves going down a path neither of them expected.
Relationships: Benny Lafitte/Dean Winchester, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Castiel/Meg Masters, Donna Hanscum/Jody Mills, Dorothy Baum/Charlie Bradbury, Eileen Leahy/Sam Winchester, Ellen Harvelle/Bobby Singer, Garth Fitzgerald IV/Benny Lafitte, Kaia Nieves/Claire Novak, Lee Webb/Dean Winchester
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fanfic that I am actually publishing so it might not be that good. I sadly don't have a posting schedule because of school and other things can easily get in the way of my writing time. This is based on the novel 'The Choice" by Nicholas Sparks but with supernatural characters and couples. It's also a very short chapter as it is just the prologue. I hope you enjoy!

_August 18th, 2018_

There was a chill in the air as Castiel made his way into the building. Doctors and nurses rushed around and the smell of hospital made him crinkle his nose. Even after seven months, he wasn't used to it. He had a bouquet of white, purple, and blue lilacs in his hand as he approached Meg.

"Hi Cas," she greeted him.

"Flowers? You really didn't have to."

"Unfortunately, these aren't for you," Cas responded with a small smirk.

"You here to talk to him?"

"Yea, is that alright?" Castiel took a deep breath to try and calm himself down. The fear in his voice was evident but Meg didn't seem to notice.

"Of course it is, Cas. He's just through there," she pointed to a grey door. "Take all the time you need."

"Thanks," Cas took a deep breath once again as his hand reached for the doorknob.


	2. Chapter 2

_July 2nd, 2010_

The water glistened as the sun reflected onto it. Dean sat on the edge of his boat grinning at the two girls in bikinis standing on the doc.

"And who is this handsome gentleman?" the brunette asked, reaching out to pet Dean's dog.

"This is Miracle. Here, watch this. Miracle, go get me a beer," he said.

Following his command, the dog stood up and carried over a beer from the open cooler. Wagging his tail, he placed it in Dean's outstretched hand and rested his chin on Dean's thigh. 

"Good boy," Dean pat his beloved dog's head.

"Aww, he's so cute," the blonde replied.

Before Dean could reply, Sam and Benny approached the boat.

"We gotta go, promised the wife we'd be back by five," Sam told his brother.

"But it's five-thirty," the brunette said.

"Exactly. Time to go, Dean," Benny ordered.

"Alright. It was nice talking to you two," he winked and turned around.

"Wait! At least let me give you my number." The brunette pulled a sharpie out of her friend's beach bag and grabbed Dean's hand. She scribbled down the ten-digit number and her name.

_Lisa._

"Call me," Lisa said. And without another word, grabbed her friend's hand and walked away, putting on a show as Dean's eyes trailed after her.

Sam snapped his fingers in front of Dean's face.

"Hey! Earth to Dean? I gotta get back unless I wanna be sleeping on the couch tonight.

Dean rolled his eyes and helped load the boat with a big store-bought fish.

"You think they'll notice?" Benny asked.

 _They always notice._ Dean thinks.

"Nah. I'm sure we won't get caught this time."

The three men quickly made it across the lake and docked.

"Took you long enough," Ellen said walking up to the boys accompanied by her daughter, Jo, and Sam's wife, Eileen.

"It took a while to catch a big fish," Benny lied.

"Mhm, sure it did. Why don't we see this 'fish'?" Jo replied.

Sam and Dean carried the cooler off the boat and opened it to show their 'catch of the day'.

Eileen smiled and rolled her eyes.

"What?" Sam signed while speaking since his wife was deaf.

Eileen and Ellen locked eyes.

"You forgot to remove the tag," Ellen explained.

 _How could we forget that detail?_ Dean thought.

Chuckling, Dean slipped away from the conversation. His father and uncle were in a deep conversation and he decided not to interrupt. Jody and Donna were talking to Dorothy, Dean's best friend Charlie's latest girlfriend. He wondered where Charlie was so he decided to go and search for her. 

He found her a few minutes later being tackled by Sam and Eileen's two kids. Five-year-old Jessica named after Sam’s deceased fiance and two-year-old Mary in honor of their mother. 

When the three girls saw Dean, Mary came running over to him and he embraced her in a warm hug. Jess jumped onto his back wanting a piggyback ride.

“You’re late,” Charlie complained. 

“Sorry, got caught up in… fishing… and lost track of time.”

“Oh, I bet you were fishing alright. For a new girlfriend,” she gave him a not so subtle wink. To which Mary and Jess responded with upset faces.

“He’s not allowed to get a girlfriend. If he has a girlfriend he’ll dance with her and not us,” Jess pouted. Mary nodded in agreement.

“Well, even if I do ever get a girlfriend, and that’s a huge if. I’d still always pick you two over her,” he assured them. “If she has a problem with that she can get a new boyfriend.” 

Dean gave the girls a goofy grin and the four of them began playing tag. By six, dinner was ready. An assortment of homemade fish sticks, hamburgers, hot dogs, and fries. There were two picnic benches to sit at. Dean chose to sit with Sam, Eileen, Mary, Jess, Jo, and Charlie.

Charlie was glaring at the other table while her two adoptive mothers, Donna and Jody, bombarded Dorathy with questions. Ellen had joined in now, which made Charlie even more upset. 

Dean nudged her.

“Hey, this is their first time meeting her. And her first invite to the family barbeque. Which is a big deal. You’ve never taken someone here before,” he tried to comfort her.

“Yea, but she’s still _my_ girlfriend. Shouldn’t I get to sit with her?” Charlie complained.

“I mean yea. But you’ve got me as company.”

“And us!” Jess giggled as Mary ran over with a fry and tapped Dean on the shoulder. When he turned around, Mary shoved it into his mouth.

“Oh! Um, thanks, Mary..?”

She gave him her brightest smile that always made him melt inside.

“Unci Dean like fry?” Mary struggled with talking. It made sense for her age but she struggled more than other two-year-olds. She didn’t like talking either, so when she did everyone treasured it. She was growing up to be a quiet kid. Introverted like Dean.

Dean had a lot of friends, sure. But he struggled with making them. And he had no problem talking to girls. He just preferred to stay in his friend group. He tried expanding it but he’s been hurt too much in the past. Now he can’t risk having his heartbroken again. That’s why he never goes beyond the second date or a casual hookup. He’s only dated three people in the past and two ended terribly. 

The only relationship he’s been in that didn’t leave him bruised and broken after was when he dated Benny. They went out for a few months. They had kissed but never gone farther. That was almost three years ago now. Dean still cared about Benny, dearly. But he found himself loving Benny less and less as a romantic partner and more as a friend. They’d been friends since. 

When Benny met Garth last summer, he became overwhelmed with happiness. Garth had been Bobby’s assistant for years and Dean barely talked to him until Bobby announced that Garth had been kicked out for being gay, so he was going to take him in until he got a better housing arrangement in place. 

Now Benny and Garth were living together in a little cottage across town. It was a small town so it wasn’t that far away.

When everyone was done eating, Jo brought out Dean’s radio and began to blast music while everyone danced around. The couples all started dancing; Bobby and Ellen, Garth and Benny, Sam and Eileen, Charlie and Dorathy, Donna and Jody. John started dancing with Jessica. Mary placed her feet on Dean’s and he danced them around the yard.

Until out of the corner of Dean’s eye, he spotted someone observing from the yard next to his. There was no fence separating the two yards but there was still an abundance of space between the two houses.

The old couple that had lived there previously had been moved into a retirement home and he’d been waiting almost two months for his new neighbor. He couldn’t quite see key features as the sun was setting but he could make out the shape of an adult man.

“It’s getting dark, we should head out,” Sam interrupted his brother's thoughts.

“Nooooooo,” Mary whined. Dean smiled down as the young girl, still standing on his toes.

“You’re coming back tomorrow, remember?” Dean informed her.

That cheered her up slightly and she reached her arms up for a hug. Dean picked her up and her tiny arms wrapped around his neck.

“I’ll carry her to the car,” Dean told Sam.

“Thanks.”

Jess had fallen asleep on Dean's chair that looked out over the lake. Sam picked her up while Eileen gathered up the drawings the young Winchesters had drawn earlier that day.

Shortly after his brother’s family left, everyone else decided to retire as well. Dorothy was invited over to spend the night at Charlie, Donna, and Jody’s house. Benny and Garth gave John a ride home. Ellen, Bobby, and Jo lived across the street so it wasn’t far for them to walk.

When Dean was alone again, he grabbed a beer and changed the music on the radio. Sitting on his chair on the lawn, Miracle lied at his feet. A mix of classic rock songs began and Dean closed his eyes. 

This relaxed state didn’t last long.

Minutes later, he heard someone yelling at him.

“Hey!” a man called, nearing him quite fast.

It was the new neighbor. Dean raised an eyebrow and thought; _well this should be interesting._

“Do you mind turning that down?” The annoyed man seemed to demand it more than request it.

“I’m sorry, I can’t hear you. Music’s too loud,” Dean joked. The man clearly didn’t find it funny as he crossed his arms and scowled.

Dean rose from his chair and paused the music. He turned to face the man with a welcoming smile, finally seeing what he truly looked like.

The man had black hair and piercing blue eyes like the sky. He wore a purple suit with a white button-up and a raggy light brown trench coat to top off the look. 

“You must be my new neighbor,” he outstretched his hand. “Dean Winchester.”

The man looked at his hand but didn’t shake it. Slowly lowering his hand, Dean grinned at the man. 

“Um, this buddy here,” pointing at his dog. “This is Miracle.”

The man nodded slightly.

“I believe this is the point in the conversation you tell me your name.”

The man rolled his eyes.

“No? Alright that’s fine too. Uh, what can I do for you, Sunshine.”

“Well, for one you can keep your music down. I have been trying to work for hours but you and your friends have kept interrupting me,” the man said.

“Alright, Sunshine. I apologize.”

“Stop calling me ‘Sunshine’.”

“Then tell me your name,” Dean was getting slightly annoyed at this point.

“Castiel.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Castiel. Welcome to the neighborhood. I am sorry for disturbing you. I will turn the music down.”

“Thank you,” Castiel scoffed.

“Hey,” a voice spoke from behind them.

It was Jo.

“Oh. I see you have… a, um… company.” Castiel said awkwardly.

Slightly confused, Dean looked at Jo again who was wearing booty shorts and a long bulky t-shirt. Dean knew it was probably her most recent fling’s shirt that she was wearing to sleep and never thought to cover up but Castiel clearly thought Dean and Jo were something more than cousins.

Dean found this funny and chuckled.

“I’ll try to be quieter,” Dean repeated.

“Thank you.”

With that, Castiel turned and walked away.

“Sorry for scaring away the neighbor, but I need ice cream and we’re all out. So I’ll be inside finishing the mint chip,” Jo informed him and rushed towards the house.

Dean sighed and picked up his beer.

“Well, Miracle. I think that went well. Don’t you?”

He sighed and went to join Jo inside.

She was leaning against the sink with a spoon in one hand and the container of mint chocolate chip ice cream in the other.

Dean reached into the fridge and retrieved another beer.

“So what’s the new neighbor like?”

Dean sighed.

“He’s great. Big ball of sunshine,” the sarcasm leaked through his voice. Jo raised an eyebrow and handed him another spoon. He joined in eating the ice cream with her. “Already annoying the heck out of me, alright?”

Jo smirked.

“Uh oh.”

“What?” Dean responded.

She shook her head and handed him the ice cream.

“I’ll tell you later,” she winked at him and left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please put helpful criticism in the comments and thanks for reading!  
> \- Aria


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is chapter three! Hope you enjoy. It's longer than I had hoped and I didn't even fit everything I wanted to but I'll continue this in the next chapter.

_ July 3rd, 2010 _

The sun began to rise at around seven and Dean dragged himself out of bed.

His first thought of the day, the same as every other day since he was fifteen, was coffee.

As he waited for the water to boil, he called Miracle for breakfast. 

Dean allowed Miracle to wander around the neighborhood as he pleased with a doggie door placed in the backdoor. Miracle had a good sense of time and like clockwork at seven in the morning Miracle would return to the house after a night out.

After drinking his coffee, Dean had a quick shower. He put on his blue swimming trunks and a black and white beach shirt. He packed a towel and some sand toys he had gotten for his nieces last year.

Packing everything into his boat and checked his phone after it buzzed to see his brother had texted him.

|  _ We’re still on for today, right? _

|  _ Yes. I’ll make lunches. The boat is loaded and I’m ready so whenever you can head out is good. _

|  _ Jess is throwing a fit because she doesn’t want to wear her sandals but we should be there at nine. _

Dean looked at the time and saw it was only eight. He sighed and entered his house to make lunch.

He made a wide range of sandwiches. Peanut butter and jam; mayo, lettuce, tomato, and roasted chicken; ham, lettuce, mustard; and many more.

He packed them all into mini zip lock bags and slid them into the cooler. He added two six-packs to the cooler and some juice boxes. He had a picnic basket somewhere and he decided to go search for it but someone knocked on the backdoor. 

He opened it to find his new neighbor, Castiel. He seemed angry, but Dean wasn’t surprised since all of their interactions so far weren’t pleasant.

“Good Morning, sunshine,” Dean welcomed the man.

“I told you not to call me that,” Castiel responded.

Dean rolled his eyes.

“What can I do for you this fine morning?”

“You can keep your filthy dog away from mine,” Castiel said.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“You heard me. I’ve been here just over two weeks and I have found your mutt near my dog multiple times. Now that I know who he belongs to I can address it,” Castiel complained.

Dean was in complete shock. Was this dude serious? 

“Why is it a problem if Miracle and your dog are becoming friends?”

“Because they have become more than that. I believe Hannah might be pregnant,” he sighed.

“Hannah is your dog I’m assuming.”

“Yes. And your disgusting mutt has taken advantage of her and now she is pregnant.”

“How do you know she is pregnant? You said yourself, it’s only been two weeks since you moved in- wait you’ve been here two weeks?!” Dean couldn’t believe he hadn’t noticed.

“Yes. I have been inside most of the time. My work is very time consuming and I’ve been unpacking.”

“Alright. Well, still. Dogs usually don’t show signs of pregnancy for three weeks. How far along is she?”

“Well, I don’t know. But her nipples are swollen. She’s lethargic. And it’s the only reasonable exclamation,” Castiel said.

“Alright. Well, luckily there is a great vet in town. It’s actually a father-son business,” Dean grinned charmingly. 

“Then I’ll take her there tomorrow. When do they open?”

“Nine to six.”

“Thank you.”

Castiel turned to walk away when Jess came running past him.

“Unci Dean!” She screamed, jumping into his arms.

“Hey, kiddo.”

“Sorry we’re late,” Sam panted. Had he been running?

“You okay?” Dean asked.

“Jess is very hyper this morning,” Sam explained. “Who’s this?”

Remembering Castiel was still there, Dean introduced them.

“Sam, this is my new neighbor, Castiel. Castiel, this is my brother Sam.”

Sam extended a hand to Castiel who shook it. Dean rolled his eyes, annoyed that Castiel didn’t shake his the night before.

“Do you have any plans for today, Castiel?” Sam asked.

“Um, no. Not many, why?” Castiel questioned.

“You should come with us. We’re going to the beach for the day. I’m sure there’s enough room on the boat and Dean always over packs lunch anyways,” Sam said.

Dean widened his eyes to the proposal. Sam just gave him a mischievous grin.

“Well, I mean I’m not sure that would be the best idea-” Castiel began before being cut off by Jo who had shown up behind him.

“Sounds like a great idea, Sam. Good thinking.”

Dean rolled his eyes and said; “You are welcome to join if you’d like.”

After thinking about it for a moment, Castiel agreed to join the group. He rushed home to change and said he’d meet them at the boat.

Dean rushed in and found the picnic basket. He placed two boxes of cookies inside followed by crackers, a bag of chips, and some apples. He added some cheese slices and salsa to the cooler. Loading the food onto his boat, Miracle boarded the boat, excited for a day at the beach, frisbee in his mouth.

Not everyone was joining them that day. Just Sam, Mary, Jess, Jo, Benny, and now Castiel.

It was a little bit awkward at first, getting to know Castiel. He was very quiet but Mary and Jess really seemed to like him. While Dean drove the boat around the lake, trying to find the river that led out to the ocean, he watched Castiel because he was curious about who he was.

“I’m Jess,” the young girl said smiling at Castiel. “What’s your name?”

Castiel gave her a kind grin.

“I’m Castiel.”

“Cassie- Castwiewl,” Mary tried to speak.

Castiel chuckled at the cute two-year-old trying to pronounce his name.

“What about Cas?” Dean called over the sound of waves crashing at the edge of his boat.

Castiel, Mary, and Jess looked up at him.

“Cas,” Mary said and clapped her hands giggling.

“Cas is much better,” Jess declared.

“Alright then. Cas,” he said looking up at Dean with a soft look in his eye. It only lasted a second, but Dean caught it.

Finally finding the river, Dean told everyone to take a seat because it could get a bit bumpy. There were a lot of rocks in the short river but Dean was very good at sailing.

After they emerged from the river, the vast ocean opened up in front of them. They could see the beach at that point and Dean found an open dock near it.

Mary’s dress came flying off as she revealed her cut mermaid print bathing suit. Benny helped her put on little duck floaties and she found Dean’s hand.

“We’ll carry the food and toys,” Sam told Dean. “You and Castiel go ahead with the kids?”

“It’s Cas, daddy,” Jess informed him.

He smiled and grabbed the cooler.

“Come on, Cas. We’ll miss scaring the seagulls,” Jess started pulling the man to hurry him up. He was shocked that they trusted him with the children. Then he saw Dean and Mary were already ahead of him. He and Jess ran to catch up.

“Cas? Do you know how to swim?” Jess asked.

“I do,” he told her.

“I can float on my own. And I can doggy-paddle and do the backstroke,” she gloated.

“Wow. very impressive. Where did you learn to do that?”

“Unci Dean taught me. Daddy never wants to swim. Do you like Unci Dean? I think he’s the bestest. Do you like him? Do you Cas?” Jess pressed. Castiel realized that she really enjoyed talking. 

“I don’t really know him that well,” Cas said.

“But he’s amazing. How could you not like him the second you said ‘hi’ to each other,” she said.

“Well, when you get older it’s not exactly that simple.”

“Yes it is. Unless they are jerks.”

Shocked at the five-year-old’s language, Cas stopped walking for a moment.

“What? Why’d you stop?” Jess pouted.

“That’s just a very, um… mature word.”

“Oh, right. Daddy told me not to say it around strangers. But we’re friends. Aren’t we?”

Cas smiled at her. 

“Sure, if you’d like.”

Jess had the most gleeful grin. She let go of Castiel’s hand and ran to Dean.

“Unci Dean! I made a friend. Cas is my friend!”

Dean stopped and as the other man caught up, Dean gave him a warm smile that made Castiel’s heart skip a beat.

_ Why do I feel like there’s butterflies in my stomach?  _ Cas thought.  _ Stop. _

Mary reached up, indicating she wanted Dean to carry her. He picked up the small child and carried her the rest of the way.

“Cas! Come chase seagulls with me,” Jess ordered.

The man complied and ran around the beach with her.

Dean set up a blanket where when Sam, Benny, and Jo caught up with them, they placed the basket and cooler. Jess grabbed the sand toys and begged Benny and Jo to build a sandcastle with her.

Mary had to go to the washroom so Sam took her to the little stalls at the ice cream shop.

Cas and Dean sat beside each other on the blanket and watched the sand building competition. Jo and Jess vs Benny.

“So Jess really likes you,” Dean spoke first.

“Yes. But not nearly as much as she likes you. She praises you,” Cas said.

Dean gave him a little sideways grin and chuckled.

“Yea. You also got Mary to speak. That’s rare.”

“I realized she doesn’t speak much, why is that? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“She just struggles with talking. Don’t really know why. We’re hoping it gets better as she ages,” Dean explained.

“Okay.”

Miracle suddenly stood up as Mary and Sam approached. Sam grabbed his orange frisbee and tossed it. Miracle went sprinting after it, jumping and catching it in the air.

“Unci Dean,” Mary said reaching her tiny hands for him.

“What’s up, munchkin?”

She pointed to the water.

“Want to go swimming?” Dean guessed.

She nodded her head and grabbed Dean and Cas’s hands.

“You want us both to come?” Cas asked.

She nodded and pointed at Benny.

“And Benny?” Dean said.

She grinned and started rushing towards the water.

“Alright, guess we’re going swimming,” Dean said. “You don’t have to come if you don’t want to,” he said looking at Cas.

“No, I’ll join you,” Cas said.

“Hey, Benny. Mary wants you to come too,” Dean called his best friend.

“I’m failing at this whole sandcastle thing anyway,” Benny responded.

He removed his shirt and ran after Mary, trying to reach her before she reached the water.

Dean pushed himself off the ground and unbuttoned his shirt, looking out at the ocean.

He didn’t seem to notice when Castiel’s eyes instantly widened at the man's smooth chest. He had a tattoo on his left shoulder of what looked like a sun and he had the most amazing set of muscles as he slid his shirt off his shoulders.

At a loss for words, Castiel stayed seated and that’s when Dean finally looked at the other man.

Smirking a mischievous grin, Dean eyed Cas’s shirt.

“You coming or not,” Dean raised an eyebrow. “Or are you too busy checking me out.”

Cas wasn’t expecting the slight flirtation and he swallowed hard.

Not wanting to seem too impressed, Cas rose from his seat on the blanket and reached for the hem of his t-shirt.

Dean turned away and ran towards the water, not waiting to see what lay beneath Cas’s shirt. 

Mary jumped into the waves holding Benny’s hand. Dean joined them and splashed Benny.

Castiel walked towards the water and stood letting the water wash over his feet before going in further.

“What are you waiting for?” Benny asked. 

Mary, still holding Benny’s hand, waved at Cas. She then turned to Dean and he held her in his arms. She pointed towards the ocean.

“Go,” she ordered.

“You want to go farther?” Dean asked. 

She nodded and pointed at Cas and Benny.

“You guys coming?” 

Cas finally braved the cold water. His body adjusted quicker than he thought. He was in hip-deep when Dean finally decided to look at the man. He felt like he was on a rollercoaster - his heart picked up and his stomach began to fly while his knees weakened and he fell into the comfort of the water surrounding him and Mary like a blanket. He’d never been so attracted to a man before. Or anyone, really.

When Cas caught him looking, he decided it was his chance to flirt back.

“Now who’s checking out who?” the man said, his arms crossing as he was slightly insecure.

Dean noticeably looked the other man up and down slowly, looked him square in his gorgeous blue eyes, and winked. He then turned, handed Mary to Benny, and dived under the water.

Castiel blinked in shock. 

_ What am I thinking? I barely know this guy. I barely know any of them. In fact, I just threw away my whole day to spend time with these strangers. What am I thinking? Just because the hot, yet very annoying neighbor said I could join them. This is ridiculous.  _ Cas thought.

And yet, he found himself taking a few more steps forward to wear Dean had just been. He’d been under a concerning amount of time and just as Cas began to worry, Dean popped back up again further in the water.

Mary started whining and Benny took her back to shore.

Castiel, on the other hand, began swimming towards Dean. Castiel soon got far enough that he couldn’t reach the ground anymore. Dean was still a few strokes away and though Cas knew how to swim, he wasn’t great and he struggled slightly as the undercurrent attempted to pull him down.

Then, just as he thought he was going to be taken and brought to the depths of the ocean, he felt a warm body press against his own and strong arms wrap around his torso.

His breath caught in his throat as he looked up and his eyes met with Dean’s wild green ones.

Dean gave him a smirk realizing what his nearness was doing to the other man. He gave Cas a wink. “You alright, sunshine?” he asked.

Cas smiled and sighed with relief.

“I haven’t gone swimming in years. Not to mention I’ve always had a fear of water,” Castiel explained.

“Well I won’t let you drown, don’t worry,” Dean assured. “And there isn’t much to fear about the ocean. Not around here anyway. There aren’t sharks around here because there are too many people.”

“That’s not completely why I fear the water. When I was a child, I had a very… traumatic experience with water.”

Dean was curious as to what happened but didn’t push for more information.

“I suppose it wouldn’t help that you don’t really know any of us,” Dean thought this was a more suitable topic.

“Yes, but in order to make friends, you need to take small risks. And we are neighbors so I assumed it would be alright,” Cas explained, his heartbeat picking up when he breathed in Dean’s scent. He smelt of fresh fruit and baked goods. 

“Well, I promise we won’t kidnap you or anything creepy like that,” Dean smirked. “As long as you promise the same.”

Cas chuckled and nodded his head.

“I promise.”

“I’m hoping we can become good friends,” Dean announced.

Before Cas could respond, Jo and Benny swam up to them. 

Dean slowly released his grip on Castiel and made sure he was okay. Once he was sure Cas was stable swimming again, he headed for the beach.

“Hi Cas,” Jo said.

Castiel felt his heart sink. He knew that he shouldn’t be jealous of Jo, he barely knew Dean. But he was.

He smiled at her.

“It’s Jo, right?”

“Yea. I’m Sam and Dean’s cousin,” she explained.

He couldn’t hide the shock on his face. Benny chuckled at him.

“Everyone always assumes Jo and Dean are an item,” Benny said while Jo rolled her eyes.

“I’m not the relationship type,” Jo announced.

Cas couldn’t stop his eyes from drifting behind Jo to shore where Dean was swimming with his nieces. Mary was splashing around with her father and Jess sat on Deans shoulders and she jumped into the water giggling.

“I’m honestly shocked Dean hasn’t found someone yet,” Benny said, making it perfectly clear to Cas that Dean was single. “He’s a catch. I know if he found the right person, he’d make sure that person was happy.”

“So, Dean isn’t in a relationship then?” Cas asked.

Benny gave him a mischievous grin.

“Not yet. He’s only had 3 serious relationships in the past. And I know I’m the only one who ended well.”

Benny was satisfied with the shocked reaction he received from Cas.

“I don’t think that this is something we should discuss behind Dean’s back,” he responded.

“If that’s how you feel,” Benny shrugged and turned to swim away.

“Maybe another time, though?” Cas added quickly.

Benny smiled. 

“Sure thing, Cas. We should head back to shore for lunch,” he added.

Looking up, the sun was directly above them meaning it was noon. The time had passed much quicker than the group had thought. The three of them began to swim to the beach. Castiel somehow knew he would have felt safer with Dean around, as he still wasn’t a good swimmer. But he ignored these ridiculous thoughts and pushed through his fear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please put helpful criticism in the comments and thanks for reading!  
> \- Aria

**Author's Note:**

> Please put helpful criticism in the comments and thanks for reading!  
> \- Aria


End file.
